breast implants and milk supply help!!

[sammythecat]

I need some serious advice here ladies. I am currently bf my 3 month old and my milk supply is diminishing. Some background: I have 4 children. I got real serious about bf'ing with dc2 and did it for 7 months, but after 3-4 months she stopped gaining weight. I attributed it to the fact that I got pregnant with dc3 when she was 4 months old, and also because I was under a lot of stress (marital problems, impending divorce, abusive relationship etc). So I put her on formula because I felt like I was starving her. Now with dc4 I'm not experiencing any of these problems, but my milk supply seems as if it's diminishing again. My milk supply was very strong at first and I had a lot of milk. But when I pump I only pull out 3 oz at the most, and that's with a double pump. My daughter is gaining weight, but she's small for her age. I don't know what to do because I want to keep breastfeeding and feel real strong about it. I also had breast implants when I was 18, 11 years ago. The incision was nowhere near the milk ducts but I wonder if this is a consequence of having implants when I was young and maybe I should just swallow my pride and supplement with formula. What should I do? Is there anything I can take to up my milk supply? I really want to do what's best for my daughter. Any advice or help would be appreciated...

[RBinTEX]

My sister had the same problem with implants. Her babies would not gain weight. The doctor said the implants effected her ability to produce fatty hindmilk, although she producted plenty of the watery foremilk. She had to supplement. She often used one of those devices (someone else will know the name) that held formula in a bag around her neck, and had a tiny tube she laid across her nipple. The babies received her milk and the supplement at the same time while sucking. This kept her milk supply up, and gave the babies the calories they needed.

This might not be true for you, but this is just one experience I know about.

[mothragirl]

it is really common around 3-4 months to feel like you're losing milk supply, it is because your body is finally regulating how much milk to make so that you no longer have oversupply. pumping is in no way an indicator of how much milk you produce so don't worry about that. eat some oatmeal and make sure you're drinking enough water. as long as your baby is pooing/peeing, and not losing weight you're fine.